Ballack rejoiced but his celebrations were tempered by the fact that he will not play in the final after picking up a booking.

An estimated 7m Koreans watched their heroes make their exit and the Korean players can feel proud of having gone so far in what has been a sensational World Cup campaign.

Korea exceeded all expectations by becoming the first ever Asian nation to reach the last four of the competition.

But they came unstuck against seasoned World Cup campaigners Germany, who have also surprised many to make it to their seventh final against either Brazil or Turkey, who meet in the second semi-final on Wednesday.